A Successful Virginia Wine Month

While there is still dismay that Virginia actually makes wine by the vast majority of the wine-drinking public, the industry as a whole is making great strides towards getting the word out. October was Virginia Wine Month and everybody I spoke with from winemakers to wine reps to sommeliers were enthusiastic about being a Virginia wine evangelist for the month. Wineries hosted harvest festivals and live music, and restaurants offered specials on Virginia wine throughout the month. Overall, the push to raise awareness about Virginia wine was seen as a huge success and one more step on the road to winemaking respectability around the world – or at least the country.

One thing that the Virginia wine industry does have is an active and enthusiastic champion in the Governor’s Mansion. Actually, they have two of them as both the Governor and First Lady of the state have made it clear that they fully support Virginia’s wine industry and are working to see it thrive.

Gov. McDonnell Discusses the Importance of Virginia's Wine Industry.
Later He and My Wife Discussed All Things Notre Dame.
Go Irish!

At a recent Virginia Wine Month event held at Lincoln Restaurant in the District, Governor McDonnell sounded more like a wine geek than a public official when he spoke about the Chambourcin that was planted recently on the grounds of the Governor’s mansion. He told the crowd about his travel schedule which would make Bono blush: India, China, London, etc. to be the face and advocate for the industry. Through his efforts, Virginia winemakers know that they have an ally rather than an adversary that is working to see the industry grow.

And why not? Virginia is producing some great wine and the quality is only getting better. As winemaker and vineyard managers continue to take a more sophisticated approach to what grows well in Virginia’s soil, the quality will continue to increase and the potential to blend different varietals will continue to grow. Many of the wines I tasted at the event had a distinctive, almost Old World, quality about them.

Even though it is no longer October, there are still plenty of opportunities to raise a glass of Virginia - particularly Loudoun – wine and spread the word. 

There's an Owl House Over Yonder

For any DC-area wine lover who hasn't been to Red White and Bleu in Falls Church, I highly recommend a visit. It's the type of neighborhood wine and cheese shop where you can really learn a lot about what you are buying, have a personalized shopping experience with their knowledgeable staff and walk away entirely satisfied every time.

They also have weekly wine tastings and jelly bean wine kits. Want to know what you're going to drink before you buy? shell out a couple of bucks for a little packet of jelly beans that replicate the flavors. Believe it or not, it really works. 

I mention Red White and Bleu because drinking local is more than just supporting Virginia wineries. It's also shopping at local wine shops where the owners are also neighbors and really care about the customer experience and the wines they sell. Red White and Bleu is one of those shops, and every wine I have ever purchased from them has been well worth the trip. 

Owl House Red is just the most recent example. A red blend that is on Red White and Bleu's $9.99 rack, it's a dry and complex wine that is a steal at the price and goes just as well with appetizers and junk food as it does with steak or lamb. As a blend of Rhone varietals and Bordeaux varietals, it is also one of those wines that a local shop is happy to carry but a grocery, chain or big box store might not - it just doesn't fit into their classifications and can't be produced in large enough quantities to meet the demand. 

While drinking local and eating local is great - and I really do believe that Virginia wine is making huge gains - it also means supporting local merchants who really care about their community and have a passion for their products. They are also great places to try wines that may be a bit too off the beaten path for the big stores.

VinItaly 2011: Lots of Arrogance for so Little Remarkable Wine

Possibly the best part of VinItaly was its logo

Here’s everything I knew about Italian wine before going to VinItaly at the Italian Embassy earlier this week:

1. Italian wine is considered very “food friendly”
2. Hannibal Lecter enjoys a nice Chianti when feasting on fava beans and human liver
3. The Italian wine classification system is so screwed up that some of the finest wines being made have to be classified as “table wine” because they don’t fall into the rigidly defined quality wine categories
4. After the popes returned to Rome from Avignon, they insisted on drinking French rather than Italian wine
5. There’s a lot the I don’t know about Italian wine

Having attended VinItaly, and been fully immersed into the Italian wine industry, here’s what I now know about Italian wine:

1.  “Food friendly” means wines much more acidity than I am used to, which can be rather acerbic to drink on their own

2.  Because  Hannibal Lecter enjoys a nice Chianti when feasting on fava beans and human liver, Americans are quite familiar with Chianti, though many still associate it with the stuff that came in straw baskets in the 70’s

3.  The Italian wine classification system is so screwed up that some of the finest wines being made have to be classified as “table wine” because they don’t fall into the rigidly defined quality wine categories

4. After the popes returned to Rome from Avignon, they insisted on drinking French rather than Italian wine

5. Italian wine merchants may be, as a whole, the most arrogant and snobby group of people in the wine industry. Given that this is an industry populated by so many people from France and California, this is a dubious honor to say the least

6. There’s still a lot I don’t know about Italian wine

With respect to #2, the popularity of Chianti has proved to be a double-edged sword for Italian wine. On the one hand, people recognize the name Chianti, and therefore, it can be sold and people will drink it. On the other hand, many people still associate it with the swill that came in baskets that look good with a candle dripping down the side, but is actually pretty terrible wine.

Look! A non-Chianti!

Trying to educate American consumers about higher-quality Chianti, as well as on other wines from Italy, is a challenge that is consuming a lot of the Italian wine industry’s time. Still, they are pressing on.

Soave seems to be the new darling of the industry – and there is a big push to make this rather unremarkable white wine as commonplace in stores and restaurants as Pinot Grigio, which is another fairly unremarkable Italian white wine. In my opinion, Pinot Gris from Oregon blows their Italian counterparts away. I would love to be proven wrong, but it hasn’t happened yet.

There is a big push to reintroduce Soave to the American market. This was the best of the bunch at VinItaly, though it was still rather unremarkable

What I noticed at VinItaly is that the Italian wine industry as a whole would love to take more of the American market, and are unified – or as unified as so many Italians can be on a given topic. They do not, however, have a desire or feel that there is a need to educate American consumers as to why we should care about their wines or why it would be beneficial to learn about Italian wines other than Chianti and Pinot Grigio.

People being all Italian and wine-snobby at VinItaly

I have been to a lot of wine events, but never in my life have I attended one where there was almost a universal disdain for potential consumers, where questions were answered with scorn and the expectation was that either people would like the wines being offered or they were incapable of understanding the nuances and complexities at hand. At one point I asked one of the reps how they planned to make their wines more approachable for Americans. His response: “we don’t need to make our wines more approachable. If Americans like our wine, great. If they don’t, that’s not our problem.” At another booth, asking about their other red wines that weren’t Chianti, I got this response: “[Italy] is not a one-trick pony. [Americans] need to know what they are missing before they judge a whole country.”

Fine. Then explain it to me. Sell it to me. As someone who loves wine, writes about wine and sells wine, I wanted to be wowed. I wanted to understand the passion and justification of why Americans needed to know more about Italian wine. I walked away with my opinions more or less in tact and reinforced – that Italian wine is great with certain foods and aside from that is pretty much crap.

I am still hoping that my mind will be changed. With all the wine Italy produces, not all of it reinforces my bias, and I did taste some good ones at VinItaly.

Unfortunately, most of them do, and it’s a shame that wine reps tasked with selling their country’s wine to an American market left an even worse taste in my mouth than much of the unremarkable wine I tried.   

Celebrate Virginia Wine Month!

October is Virginia Wine Month. If you're looking for a time to get acquainted or better acquainted with the great wines coming out of the state, this is the month to do it.

True, there's a lot going on in October - what with Halloween, baseball's post-season, college and pro football both well underway, hockey getting underway, Columbus Day, and a certain wine blogger's birthday, but don't ignore your local winemakers.

While there is a lot going on in October, the great thing about wine is it enhances - and improves - just about any situation. So sit back, take in all October has to offer and raise a glass of Virginia wine to celebrate how far the industry has come in a relatively short time.

Celebrate Virginia Wine Month with Great Virginia Football Wines!

October is Virginia Wine Month. Make sure to support your local Virginia wineries during the month.

October is also when both college and pro football are in full swing, as is baseball's post-season. So many sports, so little time. And so much watered-down, bad beer...

Until now.

Check out my latest column in the Loudoun Times-Mirror to learn about great Virginia wines to enjoy next time you settle in to watch a game.

The key takeaway is that there are many, many great wines coming out of Virginia that go with football and all its trappings.

Are you brave enough to be seen at your next game-watch sipping wine? You won't be disappointed if you are!

Fall Football Wines

At virtually every sporting event an game watch I go to, I withstand a certain amount of ridicule for preferring wine to beer. It is true that we are in the minority when it comes to preferred beverages inside stadiums, and the options can be crap. Why there can be a dozen microbrews available at Wrigley Field and I am stuck choosing between red and white Sutter Home shows what we are up against.

And yet, it is all worth it. Let your friends root around in the ice tub for a beer. If you like wine, drink wine. If you choose correctly, you might even convert some people to the cause.

For football wines, I am a big fan of big, bold Zinfandels, lighter, smokey Bonardas and, of course, Virginia Cabernet Francs. Any of these make watching a game all the more enjoyable.

So, with football season right around the corner, I'm getting ready to yell "go Irish!" on Saturdays, "go Bears!" on Sundays and hope I don't do it around white sofas because there will be a glass of red wine in my hand.

Americans Love Their Wine

For those of you who haven't heard, Americans lover their wine. This trend has been growing for some time, and it was recently reported that the United States now consumes wine than any other country in the world. Good job everyone. Let's keep it up! You know that some countries - I'm looking at you France - are going to double their efforts to regain their prominence as the world's top wine consumers.

The trend towards wine has become so pronounced that even morning news shows are starting to take notice. Recently, CBS' The Early Show aired a segment on American winegrowers and American wine consumption. It is a good piece that discusses the American wine market and new, boutique American winemakers.

One of my favorite Finger Lakes wineries, Heart and Hands, was profiled as one of the new breed of high-quality, boutique American wineries that is meeting the growing demand.

I would suggest you check out the Early Show segment and, more importantly, keep supporting your local wineries. Heart and Hands is just one example of the great quality wine being made in small batches in places like the Finger Lakes and Virginia.

High-quality and local wine consumption is trend that should continue.